Fox Food
by FantomoDrako
Summary: Mysterious happenings are taking place in the Leaf Village and Naruto is right in the middle. What's happening and can it be stopped before the damage is irreversible? Rated T to be safe for future chapters. Co-written with inukagome15!
1. Cunning as a Fox

**A/N - Fantomo:** I know, I know…I have a lot of other fics going at the moment, so what the hell am I doing writing another?! I'd like to know that myself…-grumbles- Fear not, I have not stopped the others. I just got the idea for a Naruto fic and _**HAD**_ to write it! This is my first Naruto fic so forgive me if it sucks. Co-authored by the wonderful **inukagome15**!

 **Note:** I got this idea from the episodes when Mizuki escaped from prison, so it's set during filler (original series, not Shippuuden).

 **Disclaimer:** I own the first 3 Naruto movies and the first 3 volumes of the original series. I'm hoping to get them all, but that'll have to wait a long time until I save enough money to do such a thing. If I can't even do that, what makes you think I own it? I wouldn't need to be buying all the episodes and movies then!

* * *

 **Chapter One:** **Cunning as a Fox**

It was a fairly nice night. The stars could be clearly seen, twinkling overhead like miniature guardians of those they watched during the night. A small, chilly breeze was the only thing that one could say ruined it. For one man, however, it was the best night of his life.

 _'After many, many hours of long, hard work it will all pay off tonight!'_ He inwardly smiled, barely able to contain his excitement. He managed to, though. It wouldn't do to give the game away, after all. He could not afford even one tiny slip-up.

In fact, even now, as he was walking towards the familiar ramen shop that he constantly saw _it_ go to, he was trying to keep his face neutral. It was all he could do not to break out into a full smile and salivate at the possibilities of what could happen. No, he needed to be calm.

 _'And it's all thanks to you, Orochimaru-sama,'_ he thought, smiling secretly. The shinobi stopped in front of Ichiraku Ramen, lifting up the cloth and pulling out a stool.

"Hey there!" Teuchi, the old man with the white hat, greeted him. "Anything I can get you this late hour?"

"I'd like a bowl of ramen with all the specials," the man responded as polite and business-like as he could. "In a box, please."

"Coming right up!" Teuchi and Ayame got to work, leaving the man to treasure the potion he had hidden in his vest. He knew he was probably raising eyebrows at such a late night order but he had an excuse for that as well.

"Well, here you go!" Teuchi laid the wrapped up ramen bowl in front of him. "Eating it tomorrow?"

"It's not for me," the man explained. "It's for Uzumaki Naruto. You know, that blond-haired kid that used to pull pranks?"

"Oh! Naruto!" Teuchi laid one hand against his chest and rested the elbow of the other one on top of that, fingering his chin. "A present?"

"Yes, but not from me," he said, lying smoothly. "It's from Lady Hokage."

"But why would she give Naruto a bowl of ramen?" Ayame asked. "It's not quite like her."

"Well…" The shinobi leaned in as if he had a secret — which he did, in fact. "Just between you and me, the lady's got a soft spot for the kid." He inwardly grimaced at that comment. How could anyone get feelings for that monster? "She thought it'd be a nice idea to give the kid a bowl of ramen for that mission he worked so hard on." That last bit was a lie but they wouldn't need to know that.

"Which one?" Ayame inquired innocently.

The shinobi had studied his target well whenever he had not been meddling with the serum he now held. He knew all the missions and whatnot that the brat had undertaken. "The one where he travelled to a place called…Crescent Island, I believe?"

"Oh, yes, that one! He ended up escorting a circus along with the original clients. It was quite the adventure as he told it!" she said in recognition. Her father and her always loved listening to Naruto relay his ninja adventures and the one concerning Crescent Island had been particularly interesting.

Teuchi nodded, smiling. "That sounds just like the Hokage to me! It's a pity the Third isn't here anymore. He probably would have been happy to see one of his students, and one of the legendary Sannin no less, continue his legacy."

"Yes, but one bowl won't be enough for Naruto," Ayame piped up. "He has an average of eight bowls in one sitting. I wonder if Lady Hokage knows that?"

"I don't suppose she does, since she only said 'one big bowl'," the man said as normally as he could. He had not been prepared for such a question and had hastily improvised. Since, unlike the Third Hokage, the Fifth never came here, there was a high chance the lie would remain undetected. _'It just depends on how much about the Fifth that wretched little brat says to these two.'_

"No matter," Teuchi interposed and the ninja almost sighed in relief. "Naruto will appreciate ramen in any way, shape or form. He'll be very happy with this."

"Oh yeah…" The shinobi pretended that an idea had just struck him. "Could you two write a small note to him? Just tell him that it's a surprise from Lady Hokage."

"Shouldn't the Hokage write that herself?"

The man shrugged. "You know her, doesn't do anything unless she wants to. In this case, she didn't really have time to write a note." He laid down a pen and paper he had snatched before leaving his house earlier.

"We'll sign it with our names," Ayame said, waiting as Teuchi wrote down a small, congratulatory message and signed it. She then signed her own name.

"Thanks." The man laid down the money for the order and took the box. "Have a nice night."

"You, too!" Ayame waved back, smiling cheerfully.

The man ignored their goodbye waves besides throwing back a small wave in return. He was too busy trying to get to the brat's place as fast as he could.

In a few minutes, he had arrived. He dug into his vest and took out a small bottle filled with a clear liquid. Smirking, he opened the box and poured the liquid into the ramen. The ramen turned a lighter colour for a brief moment before resuming its normal hue. For a split second, the shinobi was tempted to eat it himself but just stopped in time. It wouldn't do find out what that potion could do him and he didn't particularly want to find out.

After he set the box of ramen down with the note from the Ichiraku people on top of it, he slunk back into the shadows. Tomorrow would mark its beginning…

 _'It's time to reveal you for who you truly are, Kyuubi.'_

* * *

 **A/N:** So, it wasn't _too_ bad, was it? Anyway, an enormous thanks needs to be given to **inukagome15** for writing practically this entire chapter! I only wrote, say, the first two paragraphs and a bit about two thirds of the way through. Go give her a big hug!

I was really stuck, see, and so I requested help. I only thought she'd write one or two lines, just to get me started. Imagine my surprise when an entire prologue came back! -HUGS-

Constructive criticism is highly appreciated, but flames will be used to teach my cat to stay away from fire so he doesn't stick his tail on another lit candle…

Please review! ~FantomoDrako


	2. Hark!

**A/N:** _ **Hi! My author's notes will be in italic, meaning that I'm**_ _inukagome15_ _ **, not**_ _FantomoDrako_ _ **. I'm wondering myself why I'm writing another story. But since this is a co-write, it'll be easier. Two heads are better than one, right? Or at least that's what I've heard... Anyway, this is my first**_ _Naruto_ _ **fic as well so I just hope that everyone's IC.**_

 _FantomoDrako_ _ **started this chapter out, I added some stuff, and she finished it. See if you can tell where we switched! Enjoy reading!**_

 _ **DISCLAIMER: I don't**_ _Danny Phantom_ _ **or**_ _Naruto_ _ **. Neither does**_ _FantomoDrako_ _ **so just leave us alone. We share the plot, though;**_ _FantomoDrako_ _ **came up with the idea.**_

* * *

 **Chapter One: Hark!**

A low growl of annoyance shattered the otherwise relative silence of the small forest clearing. The log had barely a dent marring its surface and that small fact was increasing its opponent's frustration. He had worn away the skin on his knuckles, though not yet to the point of bleeding, from continuous impacts with the unyielding stump. Giving another growl for good measure, he summoned what strength he had left in his tired limbs and started another round.

After a couple of furious minutes, he called it quits. His knuckles had finally given in and small rivulets of blood flowed freely down his hands and fingers. "Damn it!" he cursed with a sigh. He wearily started trudging home, intent on washing his hands. The chance that they would become infected was very small, practically nonexistent, but he did not want to rely on the Nine-Tails anymore than he had to.

Turning his thoughts to happier prospects, Naruto smiled. He had woken up that morning and had just put one foot out his door when his eyes had caught sight of a box that was sitting in the hallway.

 **Flashback**

Instantly curious, but wary of trickery, he checked to make sure no one was watching him. When he confirmed that he was alone, he cautiously touched the box, half-expecting an explosion or something along those lines. When nothing of the painful sort occurred, he picked the box up and examined it. He heard a sloshing sound almost instantly. Sniffing the package, he discerned the unmistakable scent of his favourite food: ramen.

Hearing a papery rustle, he directed his attention towards a note he had overlooked. Setting the box carefully back on the floor, he stared at the small envelope that bore his name in neat script. He flipped it over and opened it. He pulled out a short note and let the envelope drop. Scanning the writing, he recognised it as Teuchi and Ayame Ichiraku's. He read the note aloud in a whisper.

"Dear Naruto,

We hope you enjoy this special order of ramen, a gift from Lady Hokage to congratulate your efforts during your mission concerning Crescent Island.

Sincerely,

Teuchi and Ayame."

He smiled, a true smile, not one of his fox grins, and fought back some tears that threatened to spill. Whispering a 'thank you' to the air, he went inside with the box of ramen - the note tightly clutched in his fist.

 **End Flashback**

Keeping that happy memory at the forefront of his mind, he entered his apartment and made his way over to the bathroom. Turning on the tap, he let it run for a few seconds before holding one of his hands under it. As the caked blood slowly washed off, he used his left hand to reach into a small cabinet above the sink. Fishing out a first-aid kit, he balanced it on one side of the sink. Satisfied that it wouldn't topple, he started scrubbing away the reddish-brown bits that the water didn't remove. He switched hands and repeated the process. Figuring his hands weren't going to get any cleaner; he turned off the tap and took the first-aid kit to his bedroom.

He gratefully sunk on to his mattress and sat Indian style, the kit in front of him. Flipping it open, he extracted two short segments of bandages. Working quickly, with an efficiency that denoted much practice, he covered his knuckles. _'Ha, not like I need bandages for them!'_ he thought with a wry grin. _'Still, it's better that I do it. They'll heal before I go out tomorrow this way, otherwise it'd take a couple more hours and someone might notice.'_ He gave a barely perceptible shiver as his mind supplied him with various memories of random villagers from years back.

Shrugging the images away, he placed the first-aid kit back in the bathroom cabinet and crawled into bed. Tomorrow morning he was going to greet Sakura at the Hokage Tower before he went up to see if there were any missions. Ever since she had started her medical training under Tsunade, Sakura had become very adept at spotting injuries. Even those that were hardly noticeable that you had to really look to find. If his knuckles were not fully healed by the time he saw her, she would notice right away and ask him all sorts of questions that he would rather avoid.

Not because he had anything to hide, it was more the fact that he simply did not want to reveal the reason he was pounding away at a sturdy log. He could lie, of course, but he hated lying no matter how big or small the lie was. He only lied about the Kyuubi because he was far too afraid of what consequences would follow should his friends find out.

They would either hate him or accept him for what he was. Drawing on past experiences, he wasn't too hopeful for the latter. There was no middle ground; and if there was, Naruto wasn't aware of it. No matter what, he didn't want to lose his friends. They were far too precious to him to risk that. He'd already been through that horrible loneliness before and didn't want to turn out like Gaara.

' _Well, they won't find out_ ,' Naruto assured himself. ' _Unless someone tells them and that's against the law the Third Hokage made._ ' He was grateful for the law, even though it had left him to wonder for years as to why everyone hated him so. It was only thanks—or no thanks—to Mizuki that he even knew about it. Hate could have its advantages after all.

* * *

The next morning, Naruto ate his customary breakfast—ramen—and went for his morning run. He took a shower afterwards and chugged down a glass of milk—which was almost expired but thankfully didn't taste bad—before heading out to visit Sakura. He wasn't sure what she'd be in the middle of but wanted to check up on her.

' _If she's in the middle of training this early in the morning I'd be surprised_ ,' Naruto thought, whistling cheerfully as he walked through the waking village. ' _But Granny Tsunade's such a nose-grinder that she probably is working._ '

He was halfway to her house when he passed by Ichiraku Ramen. Remembering the box of ramen that they had given him yesterday morning, Naruto slipped under banners and grinned broadly.

"Good morning!"

"Naruto!" Teuchi beamed in return. "Okay, kid?"

"Yep!" Naruto shuffled around a bit, unsure of how to phrase his thanks.

"Uhh," he started. "I just…wanted to thank you guys."

"For what?" Teuchi asked.

"For that box of ramen you gave me yesterday," Naruto managed to say.

"Did you like it?" Ayame inquired.

"Yeah." Naruto smiled. "Just wanted to say thanks."

"It was from Lady Hokage," Teuchi said. "We just passed it on. Glad you enjoyed it."

"I did," Naruto said eagerly. "Thanks again. So, uhh…see ya!" And he left abruptly, unable to stop feeling embarrassed.

Five minutes later, he was standing before Sakura's door, debating on whether or not he should knock. On one hand, it had been a while since he'd seen her and on the other, he wasn't sure how Sakura would receive him. The last time was all too clearly burned into his mind. If he recalled it accurately enough without exaggerating, he had jumped in on her trying to revive a fish out of water that was clearly dead, causing her to badly mess up with her jutsu and give the fish an extra head. She'd given him a few nasty punches and kicked him out of her door to boot.

Shuddering delicately at the memory of a fish with two heads and _four_ grey eyes that gave him the creeps, Naruto screwed up his courage and knocked delicately on the door. When no angry voice snapped at him from the inside, he tested the doorknob—which was unlocked—and peered in to see Sakura bent over at her desk.

"Umm, Sakura?" Naruto asked tentatively. "How you doing?"

"Naruto," Sakura said curtly, briefly giving him a wave without turning around. "What do you need?"

"Just wanted to check up on you," Naruto said nervously, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. "When was the last time you've eaten?" It was a valid question, as he had once stumbled in on Sakura in such a messy room that he was hard pressed to believe that it was _her_ room. Weren't boys supposed to be the messy ones and girls the ones that obsessed over cleanliness?

"I just ate yesterday," she said, sounding rather disgruntled. His friend turned around fixing him in place with her pale green eyes. Her brow was furrowed, an automatic sign that she was cross.

"Are you doing anything important?" Naruto persisted, trying not to let his nervousness show. "'Cause, uh, I thought that we could ask for a mission. Like old times, you know…" He trailed off.

"I'm _busy_ , Naruto," Sakura snapped, waving around a brush that was drenched in ink. "I have to file this essay on cell construction. Unless _you_ know of a miraculously easy way to cure cell death in a heartbeat I'd suggest you leave."

' _Kyuubi's chakra could but I don't quite know how that would work. And I don't think the guy would be willing to give up his secrets either._ ' Naruto searched his brains for an excuse to leave. If Sakura fouled this up because of him, he'd find out…in a painful way. "If you're busy—"

"I am," Sakura interrupted.

"—I'll leave," Naruto finished hurriedly, opening the door behind him and slipping out in a flash.

Once outside and free from Sakura's wrath, Naruto heaved a huge sigh of relief. That had been too close. Imagine the consequences if Sakura had been in the middle of another experiment. That would have been decidedly…uncomfortable. On the plus side, she hadn't noticed anything off about his hands, which either meant that they'd healed properly or she was too distracted to look.

His visit to Sakura taken care of, Naruto set a brisk pace to see Tsunade next. He was eager for some action and didn't want a mission that involved uprooting weeds.

He didn't go to her office, instead heading to the room where missions were handed out to the various shinobi. If she was doing her job correctly, she'd be in there and not in her office. Of course, most days she wasn't in there and was found napping in her chair before Shizune caught her and told her off. Still, because today was a workday, Tsunade _should_ be in there.

Naruto was delighted to see that his hunch had been correct as he looked in and saw Tsunade yawning, bored, as she fanned herself with a file. There were no shinobis there as of yet and only Shizune along with that strange pig were present.

"Granny Tsunade!" Naruto bounded into the room, screeching to a halt before the table. "How you doing?"

Not looking startled at all, Tsunade's only reaction was a raised eyebrow; she set the file in her hand down and cupped her chin in her hand, still looking utterly bored. "Look what the cat dragged in," she remarked.

Naruto scowled, bristling at the insult. The whiskers on his cheeks were prominent enough without him being teased about _cats_. But he held his tongue, reminding himself that Tsunade was the one who had given him the ramen. Slowly counting to ten, he took a deep breath and released it slowly. "Do you have a mission?" he finally said.

 _Now_ Tsunade looked startled. ' _No reaction?_ ' she wondered. The blonde-haired robust woman straightened up slightly. "Mission?"

"Yeah. You know, something that shinobis are supposed to do?" Naruto reminded her. "It's why there _are_ shinobis?"

"I could give you one…" Tsunade left the silence to drag out after that, causing Naruto's impatience to spike.

"And?" he prompted, unable to help himself.

"But you probably wouldn't like it." She smirked, enjoying the sight of the flustered blond before her.

"What is it?" Naruto demanded.

"Weeding," Tsunade said simply. She then waited for the explosion to follow.

It did happen. Just not externally. ' _WEEDING?!_ ' Naruto repressed a growl. ' _ **Again**_ _?! Is that_ _ **everything**_ _that these people can come up with? OK, calm down, Naruto, calm down…_ ' He took a deep breath, turning slightly red, and let it out, slowly returning to his normal colour. "Is that everything?" he managed to say cordially. "Just weeding?"

' _Well, well_.' Tsunade smiled a small smile, which escaped Naruto's notice. ' _Looks like he's growing up. A week ago and he'd have exploded in my face._ '

"Well?" Naruto pushed impatiently, resenting Tsunade's stubborn silence.

"Hmm…" Tsunade tapped her chin thoughtfully, flicking through the pages on the desk but not letting her glance waver from the genin before her.

Naruto fidgeted, desperately hoping that there was something worth doing on that list.

"Oh, sorry." Tsunade closed the file. "The only thing that's available is menial labours. Up for it?"

"No C missions?" Naruto asked, keeping a tight rein on his temper.

"All our higher chunins and jonins have gotten those," Tsunade said, hiding a smug grin. She _really_ enjoyed poking fun at Naruto.

' _Either there really is nothing or she's just putting me on,_ ' Naruto thought. ' _In any case, I'm not getting anything here. Should I thank her for giving me that ramen?_ ' He debated the matter, puzzling both Tsunade and Shizune to no ends.

' _Naruto is acting…more mature,_ ' Shizune observed. ' _When did he grow up so fast?_ '

"Umm…I just wanted to…" Naruto scratched his hair nervously, trying to phrase it properly. "I just wanted to thank you." There, he had said it.

"Thank me? For what?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow. This was new. She wasn't aware of having done anything that merited her being thanked by Naruto of all people.

"For…ah…you know." Naruto actually blushed. ' _Just come out and say it already!_ '

"Oh, you mean _that_?" Tsunade thought she knew what he was getting at. "No problem, kiddo. Just take good care of it."

Naruto blinked, sure that she hadn't gotten it correctly. How could he take good care of a bowl of ramen? "Uh, what?"

"I already said it's no problem," Tsunade insisted, getting irritated. "Now just go before I really get pissed."

"Yipe!" Naruto jerked, sensing the threat in the Hokage's voice, and ran out. He still hadn't rectified the mistake but if he did say "Thanks for the ramen", Tsunade would probably blush and say nothing. They'd both be extremely embarrassed. In fact, it was probably for the better.

* * *

Without a mission to do, Naruto found himself aimlessly wandering around. He sighed, wondering if he should try to find someone to hang out with, but he figured that they'd be busy training or something. He moodily kicked a pebble a few feet away where it landed to the side of his meandering path. Deciding that doing some more training was better than nothing, he headed to his secluded spot in a forest clearing.

When he got there, however, he didn't feel like training. Huffing in irritation, he slumped to the ground with his back against a tree. Taking in the comfortable atmosphere, he raised his knuckles to eye level to examine them.

They had healed completely, so it was no wonder Sakura didn't notice. He gave a rueful smile and let his head fall back to rest against the tree, eyes closed. He had the whole day ahead of him and no idea how to fill it in. _'Ha, it almost makes me want to prank someone…but I pretty much gave up pranking when I graduated from the Academy. I wonder how Iruka-sensei's doing without me around to cause trouble. Though, knowing Konohamaru, he's not making it easy for Iruka-sensei either!'_

He let loose a chuckle at the thought of his old academy teacher running himself ragged after Naruto's self-proclaimed 'eternal rival'. _'I bet the little brat couldn't paint the Hokage Mountain!'_ he thought to himself, with no small amount of pride. He laughed again at the fact that, to this day, no one knew how the whiskered boy had pulled off such a feat.

He was pulled from his recollections as his ears picked up the soft pad of something moving through the forest loam. Reluctantly opening his eyes, he scanned the immediate vicinity but saw nothing. None of the bushes were moving either, which made Naruto wonder if he had been hearing things. Until he heard it again, that is. Trying to make as little noise as possible while standing up, he did a wider sweep of the area.

Still spotting nothing, he switched his focus from his eyes to his ears and strained them for any sound. The results he got from this action were immediate and unexpected.

He could clearly hear every thump of his heart and every breath he inhaled and exhaled as it passed through his lungs. Closing his eyes for fewer distractions to his senses, he stood there and simply listened. Aside from himself, he could make out a slight whistling noise that he realised was the faint breeze blowing through the leaves and the chirping of various birds. He could even hear the tiny rustles and squeaks made by the various critters that scurried about in the loam.

Puzzled, Naruto opened his eyes and frowned. As soon as his vision came back, his hearing decreased a bit until he couldn't hear the critters or the slight breeze anymore. This only confused him more. _'What the…? What's going on? I know a ninja has heightened senses compared to a civilian…especially the Inuzuka's with their sense of smell, but…'_

Finding no answers, Naruto toyed with the thought that he was dreaming or going crazy. He sincerely hoped he wasn't losing it. _'Okay…if this isn't a genjutsu or a hallucination… What if something's wrong with me? Should I go see someone, like Granny Tsunade?'_ Growing more anxious by the minute, he decided not to. _'I mean, it's probably just my imagination acting up because I'm so bored!'_ he thought with a relieved grin that didn't quite reach his eyes.

Mostly satisfied with this conclusion, he forced the incident out of his mind. Walking over to the log he had been battering away at last night, he got into a basic taijutsu stance. Not wishing to scrape his knuckles bare again so soon, he opted to lash out with his sandalled foot.

Picking up some speed, he suddenly switched legs. Continuing in this vein for at least an hour, he only stopped to take a breather.

Because of his large amount of stamina, and the fact that he hadn't been using chakra, he was barely sweating. He flopped back against the same tree he had been leaning on earlier. The monotony of repetitive motion had finally gotten to him.

The calmness of his surroundings and the warm sunlight eventually worked their magic. Without even realising it, Naruto's eyes closed and he dozed off.

* * *

 **A/N: If you want to know how much of the next chapter is written, head to my profile. I have a section where I post the current progress of all my fics. Chapters will increase in length once we delve deeper into the story.**

 _ **So what'd you guys think? Good? Bad? Did you catch the difference? If you didn't, don't be surprised. It's subtle. Review please! If you flame, we'll use it to light the fires of our muses.**_


	3. Is It Imaginary?

**A/N:** _ **I hope you guys are enjoying this story so far! We're enjoying writing it. Naruto is always so much fun to write because he's so immature... XD**_ _**Sakura's reactions are just as much fun. What does the chapter title put into your head? Take a guess and find out! Can you find out where we switched?**_

 _ **I think that's it!**_ _FantomoDrako_ _ **will add anything else that needs to be said at the end of this chapter. Enjoy!**_

 _ **DISCLAIMER: If you think I own**_ _Naruto_ _ **you're sadly mistaken. The only thing I can draw that resembles a manga character are their faces... Maybe Naruto's whiskers? But don't steal the plot. That belongs to the both of us.**_

* * *

 **Chapter Two: Is It Imaginary?**

A gentle zephyr eased its way around the glade; caressing all with its feather-soft touch. The sun had passed its zenith not too long ago. The warm rays of the fiery orb were at just the right angle to alight upon the whiskered face of a sleeping boy.

With the light shining a reddish colour through his eyelids, Naruto started to stir. He was quite content to stay where he was and tried to ignore the sun. Unfortunately, his stomach chose that time to give off a loud, unhappy gurgle. ' _If I'm this hungry, it must be time for lunch,'_ he thought groggily, still a little muddled by sleep. Tilting his head up, he took note of where the sun was. "Jeez, no wonder I'm hungry!" he grumbled aloud.

Getting to his feet somewhat stiffly, Naruto made sure to stretch out his muscles to work out any kinks and remaining stiffness. That done, he pulled out his frog-shaped purse. Opening it, he quickly counted out what was left. Giving a happy grin, he stuffed the frog back into his pocket and set off to his favourite ramen stand.

Reaching the end of the forest that his glade was located in, he let a barely perceptible sigh past his lips. _'I hate walking through the streets…you'd think I'd be used to it by now…'_ he thought morosely. Shrugging the unpleasant thought away, he plastered on his signature fox grin and stepped jauntily into the village streets.

He ignored the few glares sent his way and ducked under the Ichiraku shop curtain. Plonking himself down on one of the seats, he only had to wait a couple of seconds before he was hailed by a cheery voice.

"Why, hello, Naruto! Here for lunch, I presume?" Ayame inquired, tucking a stray lock of brown hair back under her bandanna.

"You know it!" he chuckled in reply.

Ayame just smiled serenely. She was always happy when her 'little brother' came around. He paid well, too. "What flavour will it be this time?" she asked, already knowing he wanted ramen of some sort.

Naruto stopped and pretended to think hard, causing Ayame to giggle. There was no one else at the stand save for him, Ayame and her father, so he was a lot more comfortable and true. He nodded in an exaggerated way and sent the young noodle chef a charming - yet cheeky - smile. "Oh, how about a miso?"

"Sure, coming right up!" She turned around, but didn't need to repeat Naruto's order to her father as he'd been listening.

Teuchi had already started to cook the noodles when he saw the mop of blond hair come under the curtain. He hummed a little to himself as his hands, sure and swift from many years of practice, expertly tossed the noodles around to cook them better.

Naruto's nose could already detect the sweet scent of the cooking ramen. Trying hard not to drool, he attempted to distract himself while he waited for his meal. Closing his eyes, he mentally recounted the money he had with him. He only had enough for three bowls because the rest of his hard earned cash was carefully stashed away.

The first time he had gone somewhere with Jiraiya, the old man had taken - and spent - practically all of his money. Naruto had quickly learned the value of saving some money at home after that. He always kept half of his earnings on him and the other half hidden in his house.

Naruto almost fell off his seat as a loud clattering noise assaulted his ears. Bubbling water, breathing, heartbeats and low, indecipherable voices came to him in a rush. He quickly stifled a surprised gasp.

Ayame had, at that moment, chosen to turn around to chat with her favourite customer. She took in his slack jaw and wide eyes; a complete deer-caught-in-the-headlights look. Growing worried, she walked over to him. Leaning over the counter, she anxiously waved a hand in front of his face. "Naruto? Are you alright?"

Feeling a little dizzy, he nodded. He didn't want Ayame to start fussing over him if he told her the truth. Besides, the sounds had faded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just remembered something that I was supposed to do today, that's all. Don't want Sakura getting mad at me for forgetting!" he chuckled nervously, hoping Ayame would buy the cover-up.

She did, mistaking his nervousness for fear of his pink-haired team-mate's wrath. "Oh, you had me worried for a moment there. It looked like you'd seen a ghost!" she continued, missing Naruto's small flinch at the word 'ghost'.

"Yeah…" he trailed off half-heartedly. "Sorry Ayame, but I only have enough time for three bowls. The thing I remembered is really important!"

"It sure sounds like it, if it's got you this spooked, kid. Here, I'd eat up quickly then," Teuchi advised, setting the miso ramen down on the counter. He turned away to prepare two more bowls, muttering under his breath, "Not that he ever eats slowly anyway. Where does the kid put it all?"

Naruto hadn't been fully lying. This reoccurrence was proof that something was wrong. His mind began working as furiously as his mouth. _'This sound thing is becoming an issue. If I don't get to the bottom of this, it'll cause problems. What would happen if I was on an important mission and it happened again? I can't freeze up like that; it'd be far too dangerous! If I gasped because of it, too, it could give away my position to any enemies!'_

His mind took a brief respite as it registered his second helping. Naruto shoved his first bowl out of the way and pulled the second closer, digging his chopsticks in. _'That first time in the glade couldn't have been a one-time thing then. Maybe I really SHOULD go see Granny Tsunade?'_ Tilting his head back, he slurped up the broth.

* * *

Another bowl of ramen later and Naruto was walking down to Sakura's house, musing on what he would tell her. He had to find a story that wouldn't sound too unbelievable because otherwise she'd kick him out.

'" _Oh, hey, Sakura! I know you kicked me out yesterday but I just wanted to tell you about something weird that happened to me today! What was it? Well, I could actually hear my heartbeat!"_ ' He was mentally rehearsing ways to tell her and imagining her replies.

'" _Oh, yeah, I know that you can hear your heartbeat but I could also hear my blood running through my veins! It was so weird because normally I can't hear anything that clearly. Any idea what's going on?"_ ' And he immediately scrapped that idea. It had been the third one, too…

Just when he was getting stuck on "I can hear the wind whispering through the tree leaves" he was in front of Sakura's door. Naruto decided to wing it from there and knocked on her door, plastering a rather nervous looking grin on his face. He still had to keep the cheery mood up otherwise Sakura would really think something was wrong.

He didn't have to wait five minutes until Sakura opened up, hair sticking out in odd places.

"Oh, it's you, Naruto." Sakura sounded disappointed. "Did you want something? You just saw me yesterday if I remember correctly. Or at least I _think_ it was yesterday." She looked deep in thought.

"It was yesterday, Sakura," Naruto assured her. "Hey, uh, can I come in?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow but shrugged. "All right. Is there something you want, though?" she added once Naruto was across the threshold.

Naruto looked around the room before leaning in and whispering, "How good are you at diagnosing things?"

"All right." Sakura was whispering, too, looking confused. "Why are we whispering?"

"'Cause I have something that's confusing me," Naruto started, leaning back, looking at the ceiling, and twiddling his thumbs. "Um…what are hearing problems exactly?"

"Problems with your hearing," Sakura said matter-of-factly.

"No!" Naruto shook his head. "I meant, what kind of hearing problems are there? Is there something like someone's hearing actually being—I don't know— _magnified_?"

Sakura leaned back against the doorframe. "Not that I've heard of. The only cases that have been recorded are of hearing loss or deafness. That's when you can't hear," she explained. "At all," she added as if Naruto were stupid.

' _I'm not stupid. Even if I act like it._ ' Naruto kept his mouth shut and nodded, encouraging her.

"But I haven't heard of anyone's hearing actually being magnified unless they use a jutsu," Sakura concluded. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm having some problems with mine," Naruto said, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.

"That's hard to believe," Sakura muttered, disbelieving. "You're always screaming at the top of your lungs…"

" _New_ problems." Naruto stressed the "new". He didn't think that screaming at the top of his lungs counted for making his hearing sharper. "They really started yesterday, I think, after I checked up on you."

Sakura put both hands on her hips and glared at him. "Are you my doctor?"

"Um, no?" Naruto didn't see where this was going.

"Then why are you checking up on me like I'm five-years-old and incapable of taking care of myself?"

Oh, that was where it was going.

"'Cause the last time I left you alone for five days your room was a wreck, dishes were piled up in the sink, and you had ink splattered all over your clothes," Naruto said, trying not to back down from Sakura's ferocious glare. She was _scary_. "And you looked like you hadn't slept in all that time. Honestly, Sakura, I don't think Granny Tsunade would be happy to see that you're driving yourself nuts over this apprenticeship thing."

"It's Lady Tsunade!" Sakura corrected sharply. "And going without sleep is the only way I'm getting enough time to study!"

Naruto realized they were getting off-track and steered the conversation back to his original topic. "Look, I know I have a problem when it comes to my hearing, okay? Just hear me out, will you?"

"Listening." Sakura waited impatiently, one brow raised.

Now came the problem. "I've had these…episodes," Naruto said slowly, trying to find the words to express the problem. "I've only had them twice but they really caught me off guard. If it happens during a really important mission I'll be in big trouble. See, my hearing's gotten…better? I don't really know how to describe it but there are these times when I can hear practically everything that's going on. And when I say 'everything', I mean _everything_."

Sakura was actually looking interested. "Elaborate."

Naruto struggled to describe the experience. "I can hear all the heartbeats in the vicinity, conversations I normally wouldn't be able to overhear, and people _breathing_. That was just the second time. The first time I was…" He debated briefly on whether or not to tell her and then just did. "…alone in the forest and I could hear all the small animals around me. I could even hear my breaths going in and out of my lungs."

"Is that all?"

"Yeah." Naruto shifted his weight. "So…do you have any idea what it is?"

Sakura was in thought for a moment. "Is it happening right now?"

Naruto was taken aback by the question. "Uh, I don't think so."

"Can you hear this?" Sakura demanded. She then proceeded to mumble something in a low voice that Naruto couldn't make head or tails of.

"No, I can't," Naruto admitted, a bit frustrated. "Look, Sakura—"

"Did you think that it might be just your imagination?" Sakura interrupted.

Naruto folded his arms, glaring now. "Why the hell would it be in my imagination? I wouldn't just make up something that's so life threatening!"

"How is it life threatening? If anything, I'd actually call it helpful…"

"It just comes on and off! I can't control it! What if I'm in the middle of a really important fight and it just hits me? What then? Suddenly having a really important sense _magnified_ would catch me off guard!" Naruto was ranting. "And—"

Sakura cut him off again. "Naruto, if you want attention from me you don't have to go to these elaborate lengths. Look, get some rest, okay? You do look like you need it."

Naruto stopped there, his brow furrowing. ' _I slept a ton last night and took a nap earlier! How could I look like I need rest?_ '

"It's night-time now," Sakura continued, looking out the window to make her point, "and it's getting late. Get home, get rest, and clear your mind, all right?" She pushed Naruto out her door. "If you're still having problems"—she looked really disbelieving there—"come see me again tomorrow. We can have Lady Tsunade check it out."

With that, she shut the door right in Naruto's face. ' _Well, that's just great…_ ' Sighing in frustration, he stuck his hands in his pockets and headed back to his apartment.

* * *

"Okay, now what am I supposed to do?" the blond grumbled, sitting cross-legged on his bed. He had his curtains closed tonight. Normally he wouldn't bother with such a thing but, just tonight, he didn't want anyone seeing what he was up to. "That's right…'clear my mind'."

Naruto was trying to meditate. He figured he might be able to magnify his hearing again if he was calm and focused enough. Unfortunately, he kept hearing Sakura's disbelieving words echo in his mind. Her clear-cut refusal to take him seriously had stung. He had thought that his _team-mate_ of all people, would give him the benefit of the doubt at the very least.

Unable to block out the pink-haired girl's voice from his mind, he gave an angry snarl and wildly swung a fist around. It came into contact with the dummy Naruto had made of Kakashi. Various bits of straw and stuffing were forcefully ejected from the dummy's torso to float down to the floor. Feeling a fraction better, Naruto settled down to try clearing his mind again.

' _Clear the mind…focus within. I feel so stupid… FOCUS! Okay, my mind is blank. Let go of all the tension in my body. Relax. I still feel stupid. Argh!'_

Naruto smacked a hand to his forehead. "It's no use…I can't seem to concentrate. Maybe if I had something to concentrate on? Just focus and think about that one thing until my mind clears? Yeah, that might work!" Completely disregarding the fact that he was speaking aloud to himself, he hopped off his bed and ran into the kitchen. What he needed was tranquillity. Getting an idea, he took out a glass from one of his cupboards and filled it with water. Walking slow enough so that he didn't spill any, he sat himself on the floor in front of his bed and placed the cup before him.

Taking a deep breath, he willed himself to become engrossed by the water in the glass. With his eyes glued on nothing else, his mind became fixated with the water. It effectively drowned out any voices from his memories. Feeling his world fade away to the small island the cup of water had become, he closed his eyes. A cacophony of noise assaulted his sensitive hearing and he jerked into full alertness. As he did, his hearing decreased to the level he was used to. Determined, he refocused and tried again.

As the build up of tension that today had caused began to ease from his body, his ears started to pick up more than they should. It happened slowly this time, so Naruto wasn't startled out of his mini-trance.

He once again heard the blood rushing through his veins. He could even make out the voice of the cranky old man that lived close by. From what Naruto could make out, the old man seemed to be yelling at his sink. The blond struggled to stay calm, desperate not to lose all that he'd managed to gain from doing this.

As he gained some semblance of control over his hurricane of emotions, he started to hear other people. Concentrating fiercely on one set of voices in particular, he found that he could make out most of the words. When he caught the name 'Hazumi', however, he his eyes automatically snapped open in surprise.

Hazumi was a middle-aged woman that lived with her husband _three houses away_. He knew them both quite well. The two of them were of the opinion that Naruto should be exiled if not executed. They had resented the fact that the Third had overruled the council and let him live. The two did not hold a high opinion of Tsunade for that same reason; she had let Naruto live freely within the village. If they were outside when he went past, they made sure to glare or jeer at him.

Dragging his mind away from those unpleasant recollections, he realised that his hearing was no longer magnified. _'Is it my imagination or does everything sound a touch louder than normal anyway?'_ Following that nagging thought, he found it to be true.

He could just hear a little bit more than he could before this whole thing started.

He suddenly yawned. Glancing at his clock, he was shocked to find that it was past midnight. Frowning, he figured that any more 'experimenting' could wait until he got some sleep. He scoffed as Sakura's words from earlier floated through his head. _'I didn't look like I needed rest! She was probably trying to get rid of me,'_ he thought morosely.

He stripped off everything but his boxers, as it was a warm enough night to go without pyjamas, and burrowed under his bedding.

'" _It's all in your imagination." Pfft._ '

* * *

 **A/N: You know, if I didn't know which parts I wrote and which ones** _inukagome15_ **did, I don't think I'd realise where we switched… Kudos to anyone who takes a guess and gets it right!**

 **The chapters will continue to get longer from this point.**

 **That's all for this chapter. Please remember to review if you've read as we'd like some feedback. This is our first co-authored story and we'd like to know if we're doing alright so far. Please?**


	4. Mysteries

_**Hi again! Are you having fun figuring out what's going on with Naruto? It's just so sad that he had a reputation as a prankster. If he didn't, it would probably make things easier on him. Stay tuned for more.**_

 _FantomoDrako_ _ **will add whatever else needs to be said at the bottom.**_

 _ **DISCLAIMER: We don't own**_ _Naruto_ _ **\- that honor belongs to Kishimoto and the plot belongs to the both of us.**_

* * *

 **Chapter Three: Mysteries**

It didn't take long for Naruto to get ready to head over to Sakura's. This time he had his lines memorized and ready to fire. He hoped that seeing Sakura wouldn't make them fly out of his head. He knew from experience that things never went according to plan.

' _You're not letting her barrel over you this time,_ ' he told himself mentally. ' _You've got proof that this isn't in your head. …Will she let me use a glass of water?_ '

It seemed that in no time at all he was knocking on the door of Sakura's house and waiting anxiously for her to answer. On second thought, maybe he shouldn't have come over too early. But wouldn't she be awake at eight-thirty in the morning?

Naruto's internal fretting drew to a close as he heard the lock click and saw the door open a crack.

He decided to bounce right into his monologue. "Good morning, Sakura! I wanted to greet you with a bright 'Good morning!' and now guess I have so now I'll just bring you a nice breakfast but I guess I forgot…" Crap…he'd gone off track. A glint in Sakura's eye told him that he was in trouble; Naruto gulped, grinning innocently.

"Is that all?" Sakura asked slowly, her eyebrow twitching with impatience. "You knocked on my door at eight-thirty in the morning just to wish me a good morning and bring me a breakfast that isn't even in your possession?"

Naruto rubbed his head, trying to come up with a good excuse so that Sakura wouldn't kick him out before he could tell her what he'd found out the previous night. He didn't have any time.

"If that's everything," Sakura continued in a mock-pleasant tone, "I'll just go now."

She made to close the door. Naruto panicked and shoved his foot in the crack; he winced when the door squashed it between the frame and itself.

"Hang on a moment, Sakura." He decided to just jump straight into the topic. "That's not the only reason I came here. I just wanted to _ease_ into it, you know? But it was kind of a stupid reason so I guess that you can just whack…me…on the…head…" He trailed off when he could see that Sakura was seriously contemplating hacking off his offending foot with a kunai. "Don't do what you're thinking of doing!" he blurted out.

"And what am I thinking of?"

"You're thinking of hacking off my foot, right? See, I really wouldn't do that unless you're actually able to reattach it. I kind of need it."

"I can't," Sakura said nastily. "But you better get to the point instead of rambling off on different tangents before I decide to follow through on my unspoken threat."

"Remember what I talked about when I came yesterday?" Naruto asked.

"In fact, I do." Sakura opened the door wider, relieving the pressure on Naruto's foot. He resisted the urge to rub it. "Wasn't it about the 'magnified hearing' you were imagining?"

"That's the thing! It's not my imagination after all!" Naruto said triumphantly. "I experimented a bit last night and it happened again! So now that I know I can do it, I know it's not in my imagination!"

Sakura thought that through for a moment. She leaned against the doorframe. "And you're sure about this? You weren't dreaming?"

"No! I wasn't dreaming!" Naruto cried exasperatedly. "Look, if you still doubt me, why don't we do this right now? You go into a different room for five minutes, do a bunch of stuff, and then come back and ask me what you did."

"How do I know you won't be standing outside the door eavesdropping?" Sakura said suspiciously.

"You can mutter stuff, too," Naruto suggested. "Make it so quiet that I can't hear you properly unless I really do have that magnified hearing that _isn't_ in my imagination."

"All right," Sakura said. "I'll do it. You sit here in the living room." She sat Naruto down on the floor. "I'll go into a different room and do a bunch of stuff."

"Can I have a glass of water?" Naruto asked before Sakura left. "I need something to focus on in order for this to work."

"Sure." Sakura was back in two minutes with a full glass of water. "I'm going now," she warned. "This better work." Her voice held a hidden threat in it.

"It will. Don't worry," Naruto said confidently, assuming a meditating pose and staring at the glass of water.

His focus was such that he didn't even notice Sakura leave the room. He kept his breathing steady, focusing on inhaling and exhaling while keeping his attention centred on the still water in the glass before him.

Then, a second later, his senses were suddenly assaulted with a rush of noise. He fought to keep his focus among the chaos and closed his eyes, still breathing in and out. Naruto directed his attention to the telltale voice of his crush. She was in the bedroom.

"This better work," he could hear her muttering under her breath. "I'll _kill_ him if he's just wasting my time again. I've still got a ton of work to do!"

Naruto was amazed at the clarity with which he could hear her. It was as if she was standing across the room and speaking normally. Then, of course, there were also the noises she was making.

 _Splash!_

He guessed that she had just emptied a jug of water.

 _Flap!_

The bedspread, maybe?

 _Squeak!_

That sounded like the window. Sure enough, Naruto could hear a thud as Sakura quietly—for her—closed the window.

Then he heard a door open and close. Before he could snap out of his trance, Sakura had entered the room.

"Well?" she asked.

Naruto winced as her voice pierced his sensitive eardrums. His eyes flew open and the meditative trance he had entered vanished. Immediately, everything returned to normal. He briefly regretted the loss but then backtracked when Sakura continued talking.

"What did I do?"

"You started muttering," Naruto said, feeling satisfied when her eyes widened with surprise. "I think your exact words were, 'This better work. I'll kill him if he's just wasting my time again. I've still got a ton of work to do.'"

"You eavesdropped," Sakura accused. But it didn't sound so sure anymore.

"Then you emptied a jug of water," Naruto continued. "I think you rearranged your bedspread, opened and closed a window, and then came in here again. I'm pretty sure that was less than five minutes," he added.

"It felt like five minutes," Sakura murmured, still staring at Naruto. "You really weren't joking, were you?"

"I thought I already confirmed that," Naruto said, irritated.

"How'd you find out that it wasn't your imagination?" Sakura queried.

"I never thought it was my imagination!" Naruto said indignantly. "For your information, I was able to figure out how it worked last night. All I have to do is empty my mind—hence the glass."

"It's definitely interesting," Sakura admitted. "You're saying that this is a new thing, right?"

"I would have run to someone way earlier if it weren't new."

"Did you do any new jutsus recently?"

Naruto thought back to the last few days. All he had really done was physical training and some chakra exercises. It wasn't anything that would cause a dramatic change in his hearing. "No," he said finally. "Nothing new. Can we see Granny Tsunade now?"

"Lady Hokage!" Sakura snapped, horrified that Naruto could be so rude.

"Answer the question," Naruto said reasonably, aware that getting riled up wouldn't get him anywhere with his friend.

"I guess we should," Sakura said reluctantly. "I don't know what's up with your hearing. Lady Hokage might, though."

"Can we go now?" Naruto jumped to his feet. "She should be up now, right?"

"I think she got up at five," Sakura said, glancing at the clock: 8:55. "She should be in her office."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Naruto said excitedly, eager to get this anomaly explained. "Let's go!"

Sakura couldn't help but smile a bit at Naruto's enthusiasm. This was the Naruto she knew. She still had to tackle one last matter before they left, though.

"By the way, you didn't really make breakfast for me, did you?"

"Eh…no. It was an excuse."

"I think it stunk."

"My breakfasts don't stink!"

"That's because all you eat is ramen."

"That's not true!"

She raised an eyebrow, daring him to protest.

"OK. Maybe it is. Can we go now?"

* * *

"Is it normal that she's sleeping at this time?" Naruto was staring at a drooling Tsunade, who was fast asleep on her desk among piles of paperwork. "Shouldn't she be doing something…Hokage-like?"

"She needs her rest!" Sakura defended her mentor.

"At this time in the morning?"

Sakura didn't really have an answer to that. She just stared at the sleeping leader of Konoha. "Should we wake her?"

Naruto didn't answer her. He just jumped to Tsunade's side and started poking her in the shoulder. "Think she wakes up easily?"

"Naruto!" Sakura hissed, horrified at Naruto's action. "She's probably really—"

"Hah!" Tsunade suddenly woke up and attacked Naruto much to the blond's alarm. He ducked her arm and sprang to Sakura's side, whistling innocently much to the kunoichi's chagrin.

"Lady Hokage!" Sakura yelped, drawing up to her full height and dwarfing Naruto by a grand two inches. In his defence, his hair made up an inch by itself. "Did you, er, have a good sleep?"

"Shouldn't you be working by now?" Naruto asked bluntly. "Why are you sleeping anyway?"

Tsunade looked thoroughly disgruntled at the sight of the blonde. "Great. It's _you_."

Naruto instantly took offence at that. "What's that supposed to mean?!" he demanded.

"Just that you give me a headache every time you open your mouth," Tsunade explained without missing a beat.

Naruto's eyebrow twitched in annoyance as he reigned in his temper. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Tsunade switched her gaze to her apprentice. Sakura gulped and waited for Tsunade's reprimand. "What are you doing here already? Did you finish the work I assigned you?"

Sakura mentally sighed in relief, preparing her answer. "No, not yet. Naruto bothered me about this…problem."

"Is he out of ramen?"

"No!" Naruto protested. "It has to do with my hearing."

"Has it gotten worse or something?" Tsunade asked, not really interested. "You're obviously not getting my subtle message that I don't want you here at this time. Didn't I tell you just yesterday that I don't have a mission for you?"

"It's not a joke!" Naruto said at the same time that Sakura said, "It's gotten _better_ , actually."

Tsunade looked between the two shinobis. "Excuse me?"

"What I'm saying is," Sakura began, elbowing Naruto in the side, "that Naruto's hearing has gotten significantly _better_. He came to me last night with this seemingly wild story about how he could hear things like heartbeats and people whispering things from fifty metres away. He couldn't replicate it last night so I thought it was his imagination."

"Which it isn't?" Tsunade was getting intrigued.

"No. This morning he came to me saying that he can do it. I experimented by entering a different room for five minutes—"

"It wasn't five minutes," Naruto interrupted.

"Shut it," Sakura said under her breath, squashing Naruto's foot with her own.

"Ow!" Naruto hopped away, nursing his injured foot.

"As I was saying, I entered a different room for a few minutes," Sakura continued, "and did a few activities. I know for a fact that Naruto didn't eavesdrop because he was in the room when I came back, meditating on a glass of water, and had heard what I muttered, able to recite it word for word. He was also able to tell that I'd emptied my jug of water, fixed my bedspread, and opened and closed a window before coming out."

"That is intriguing," Tsunade said, studying Naruto, who squirmed a bit under her gaze. "Naruto, is this new?"

"If it weren't, I would have—" Naruto started, cutting off when Sakura stepped on his foot again, giving him a warning look. He changed his track. "Yeah, it's new."

"Did you do anything different the last few days?" Tsunade inquired. "Any specific jutsu that might have changed your hearing for the better?"

"No. All I've done is train a bit in the forest and do a few chakra exercises. I didn't do any big jutsus."

"Is your hearing better now?"

"I have to clear my mind of all thoughts," Naruto said. "But I think my hearing has improved a little since this whole thing started."

Tsunade thought for a few minutes, rolling the situation around in her head. It was obvious that Naruto wasn't lying and that Sakura wasn't playing a prank on her—however unlikely that had seemed in the first place. What could account for a sudden increase in hearing?

Her eyes landed on Naruto's stomach, where the seal for the Kyuubi was drawn. ' _Is it possible?_ '

"How good is your hearing?" she asked. "How far can you hear?"

"When I did it in my apartment I could hear the people around me behind the walls. The old guy was yelling at his sink, I think. I can hear heartbeats and my own breath going in and out of my lungs. That was disturbing," he added. "When I was in the forest I could hear all the small animals around me. I'm not sure about the exact area, though."

' _Like an animal almost,_ ' Tsunade thought, resting her head in her hand. ' _But could it be possible?_ '

"What are you thinking, ma'am?" Sakura queried, recognizing the look on her mentor's face.

"You know what I'm talking about when I say that _its_ abilities are rendering themselves in you?" Tsunade said cryptically to Naruto. "I'm not entirely sure if it's possible but that's my opinion."

Naruto was confused for a second until he realized that she was probably talking about the spirit locked inside of him. "Yeah…I do."

Sakura whipped her head from side to side, completely befuddled. "Huh?"

"But it's only a theory," Tsunade continued. "If it happens again or if something occurs, let me know."

"I'll do that," Naruto said. Then his normal, cheerful personality returned. "Thanks, Granny Tsunade!"

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched but she didn't say anything. Sakura was too confused about their exchange to scold Naruto for being so outspoken.

Still, when Naruto left the office with Sakura he couldn't help but feel worried. ' _Something tells me that her theory isn't right._ '

* * *

Since worrying wouldn't help him figure out the mystery, he decided to take a more practical approach. Upon reaching the forest clearing he had claimed as his own, he tried to increase his hearing without the aid of the water. Naruto was hoping that the place was peaceful enough to pull this off by himself. Closing his eyes, he pretended that there was a glass of water in front of him to concentrate on.

The world around him dissolved into darkness, the sounds becoming the only lights to his deprived sight. As he reached the state he desired, he slowly stood up and carefully felt his way over to his favourite punching bag; the log. Battling to keep enough focus, he punched the sturdy bit of wood. The thud of impact drilled into his brain. Gritting his teeth, he worked through the pounding in his head and started to punch in a rhythmic left-right pattern; trying to desensitize his ears to a point where the noise was bearable.

After spending another afternoon battering away at the log in his little forest clearing, he slumped onto his bed. He curled his fists in frustration. He yelped and shot upright when a stabbing pain registered in his mind. Naruto felt a wet warmth under his fingers. Uncurling them, he blinked at the blood that was slowly pooling in his palms. _'What the…?'_

Naruto went to his bathroom sink and tilted his hands to allow the blood to drip down, giving him a clearer view of his palms. Both of them had a mostly straight line consisting of four centimetre-long shallow cuts. Curling his fingers around again, each of his nails fit snugly into the slits. Bringing his nails up to eye level, he scrutinised them closely. They were not blunt, short and round as they should be. They were, instead, a few millimetres longer and starting to come to a point. Disgruntled, he washed the blood off his hands and retrieved his medical kit.

' _Second time in three days that I've had to bandage my hands! Must've forgotten to cut my nails or something,'_ he mused. Once his hands were taken care of, he brushed the matter aside, vowing to cut his nails first thing in the morning.

* * *

Teuchi hummed an indecipherable tune under his breath as he wiped up a bit of broth that someone had spilled. He had gotten a lot of customers for breakfast this morning; more than usual. He fought to keep a smile on his face as he realised that the upswing of customers this morning was due to Naruto's conspicuous absence.

Ayame had reached the same conclusion and was trying to take her mind off the sobering thought by keeping herself busy with dirty dishes. Both of them were interrupted when Kurenai's genin team, with Kiba in the lead, sauntered over.

"Hey, you haven't seen Naruto anywhere, have you?" the Inuzuka asked as a greeting.

"Naruto? No, he hasn't been here today," Teuchi replied, hoping that the blond was not in trouble.

Kiba frowned, feeling like he was on a wild goose chase. "Thanks anyway." The three genins walked away from the stall. They had only gone part-way up the next street when Kiba stopped and set Akamaru on the ground. "Your turn, boy; sniff him out!" he ordered his small, white puppy.

Akamaru gave a high-pitched bark in response and put his nose to the ground, snuffling around to pick out the one scent he was looking for. His tail was standing straight up and wagged from side to side as he walked. The puppy snorted, clearing his nose, and started again, slowly making his way through the light crowd.

"I wonder what she wants with Naruto," Kiba said, referring to Tsunade.

Shino did not look at his boisterous team-mate, preferring to keep his gaze focused forward. "I am unsure, but it does seem a little strange to me," he stated calmly.

Hinata sneaked a sideways peek at the bug-user. "Strange? It didn't seem that strange to me. Maybe she has a mission for him?" she suggested, offering her take on the situation.

"Maybe," Shino murmured, just loud enough for both of his team-mates to hear.

"Well, whatever she wants him for; we're getting paid to find him as a D-rank mission. Do either of you know where he lives?"

"No, unfortunately I do not," Shino said.

Hinata kept silent, her need to help her team warring against her desire to keep the location of Naruto's house to herself. She had followed him there many times before when she simply felt the need to watch him. Hinata stood in front of his door quite often, valiantly trying to work up enough courage to knock. The Hyuuga heiress was just about to reveal her knowledge when Akamaru gave a triumphant bark and bounded off; following a path only he could see.

Kiba smirked and jogged after his partner, throwing a quick look over his shoulder to make sure his team-mates were following. Both of them had to pick up the pace to be sure that they wouldn't get left behind, although neither Shino nor Hinata lowered themselves to Kiba's level of jogging after Akamaru.

Neither of them noticed Hinata's silent relief at not having to reveal Naruto's home. It was perhaps for the best that she hadn't told them anyway. They might have thought it strange that she spent so much time just standing there and trying to knock.

* * *

Naruto was sitting on the log he normally tried to punch to death and studying his nails with some level of confusion. He was _sure_ that he'd cut them just this morning. But how was it that they were back to what they had been last night?

He folded and unfolded his hand, careful to not cut himself again. The scratches he'd given himself last night had already healed but he didn't want to have to waste more bandages on injuries he could prevent. Looking at them once more, he sighed. They were sharp and filed to a point, once more, which was not how they had looked after cutting them.

' _I guess I'll have to cut them again,_ ' he thought, disgruntled. Naruto hopped off the log and sat down, crossing his legs to meditate. He shifted a bit as splinters from the earlier punching session poked him. ' _Okay. Breathe in…breathe out…_ ' Naruto took several deep breaths to focus himself and waited for his hearing to magnify.

It took only two seconds before his hearing suddenly increased. He didn't even react to the rapid change, merely continuing to breathe in and out. If he did have increased hearing, it would be best if he practiced using it until he got used to it. Then, once that happened, he could get to work on increasing it without meditating. He wouldn't have time to do so in a fight after all.

Naruto suddenly jumped up and pounded the log for the tenth time that morning, the loud noise reverberating in his head. It wasn't as bad as the first time, though, and that was something. He switched tactics and kicked it, still focusing on keeping his hearing sharp.

The genin was on his hundredth kick when he decided that he'd done enough training. Besides, he was hungry and in the mood for some ramen.

Naruto opened his eyes and briefly regretted the loss of his acute hearing but soon adjusted to it. Once he was on the track and out of sight of his little clearing, he took out his frog wallet and checked how much money he had in it. Naruto was pleased to see that there was enough for at least two bowls of ramen.

He was almost at the edge of the forest when he heard scampering and pounding footsteps. Naruto stowed away his wallet and kept walking, intending to meet whoever it was at the edge. He didn't find it strange that he been able to hear them coming from already thirty meters away.

By the time he'd cleared the last tree, they had already crossed his path. It was Kiba, Hinata, and Shino. Akamaru had been doing the scampering that he'd heard earlier.

"Naruto!" Kiba looked extremely pleased. "Looks like we found you!"

"Were you looking for me?" Naruto asked, wondering why they were interested in him.

"Yep! Lady Hokage made it a mission for us to find you."

Naruto frowned, not understanding why Tsunade would do such a thing. "Why?"

Kiba shrugged. "No clue. She just wanted us to find you."

"I would assume that she wants to talk to you," Shino said quietly, not moving from his standing position.

Now this Naruto could understand full well. It most likely had something to do with the Kyuubi theory that she had come up with the previous day. He nodded and said, "You guys can go then. I'll just go myself."

Kiba frowned. "Hey, now," he protested. "We still have to get paid!"

Naruto rolled his eyes. ' _Just like Granny Tsunade to make it a mission finding me._ ' He spoke dismissively. "Fine. You can come along then."

Hinata blushed brilliantly at this statement and felt rather faint. Naruto had asked them to come along! Well, okay, he hadn't asked her directly but he had still said they could go! She started to fiddle with her fingers, still completely red.

' _Naruto…_ '

None of them noticed the fire-engine girl that was walking behind them, fiddling with her fingers.

* * *

"I'm glad that you managed to get here so fast," Tsunade commented, her chin resting on her interlaced fingers. "I only sent the message out yesterday morning."

"Well, if it's dealing with a seal like the one Naruto has, anything that's out of the ordinary is important to deal with immediately," Jiraiya, the second of the three legendary Sannin, responded. His arms were folded across his chest and he was unusually solemn.

"Are you sure you aren't here for any other reason?" Tsunade asked sarcastically, raising an eyebrow.

"What else do you expect me to do?" Jiraiya seemed confused.

Tsunade looked sceptical, staring her friend down until Jiraiya started twitching. A knock at the door made her cut it off and she called out, "Enter."

Shizune opened the door, smiling. "Lady Hokage, Team 8 has found Naruto."

Tsunade straightened up. "Oh good. Let him in, will you?"

Shizune opened the door a bit wider and let a familiar blond-haired shinobi inside. Naruto was looking rather confused but realization crossed his face as soon as his eyes landed on Jiraiya.

"Hey, pervy sage!" Naruto said brightly, grinning broadly. "How's it going?"

Annoyance flashed across Jiraiya's face. "Don't call me that!"

Naruto looked properly insulted. "But that's what you are."

"Hey, listen here, kid! I already told you this once before but it looks like it didn't get through your skull!" Jiraiya was shouting in Naruto's face, who looked bored. "From the east to the west…"

As Jiraiya was introducing himself to Naruto once again, Shizune was whispering into Tsunade's ear. "Are you sure this is the right thing to do?"

"You yourself should know the answer to that, Shizune," Tsunade replied.

"But if it distracts him from gathering information…"

Tsunade scoffed. "A short break won't do him any harm. Besides, you know what kind of 'information gathering' he does."

Shizune sighed and nodded, stepping back behind Tsunade's desk.

"…the legendary Toad Sage Jiraiya!" Jiraiya finished proudly, beaming.

Naruto looked blank. "Uh-huh." He folded his hands behind his head. "Yeah, anyway, what are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be away gathering information on the Akat-what's its name?"

"Akatsuki," Jiraiya corrected, turning serious again. "I was but then Tsunade brought me back with reports about your hearing."

"So she did tell you!" Naruto exclaimed. "Do you have any ideas about what it might be?"

"Didn't Tsunade already tell you?"

Naruto frowned. "She did… But I've just got this feeling. I don't think this is the Kyuubi doing anything. If that were the case, wouldn't it have happened earlier? It's not like I just got it sealed into me!"

"That's true," Jiraiya said, "but in this case your seal is special. We don't quite know what it will do over time. It could be that it weakens over time, thus giving you some of the Kyuubi's more special attributes like increased hearing."

Naruto appeared slightly blank but he nodded. "Okay…"

Jiraiya sighed. "You have no clue what I just said, do you?"

"I do!" Naruto protested defensively. "You said something along the lines of the seal weakening over time, which might give me really good hearing. Is there anything you can do about it then?"

"Let me take a look at it." Jiraiya bent down as Naruto took off his jacket and shirt. "Now start focusing your chakra."

Naruto put his hands together for a seal and closed his eyes, concentrating. Within a few short seconds, the familiar seal had appeared on his stomach. Jiraiya studied it for a couple of minutes, frowning in confusion.

' _Nothing's changed. But if that's true, why is his hearing increasing?_ '

* * *

"Thanks," Kiba said with a slight smirk as he accepted the money from the man behind the desk. As Team 8 turned to leave, Kiba riffled through the money and split it into three even lots; keeping one for himself and giving the other two to his team-mates. "It's not much," he commented, "but I'm not gonna complain about getting paid to find that idiot."

They exited the room and wandered down the hall. "It must be a very important matter for the Hokage to pay us for simply finding him for her," Shino said.

"Maybe she really needed Naruto for something?" Hinata spoke up, sending a small glare in Kiba's direction for calling Naruto an idiot. She was walking half a step behind the boys, so neither saw the uncharacteristic action.

Kiba gave an amused snort at this. "What could she want him for that we couldn't do ourselves?" he asked in retort. Hinata, having no reply, remained silent. Kiba smiled triumphantly before turning to his stoic companion. "Any theories?" he asked half-jokingly.

The bug-user seemed to mull the matter over in his mind for a few moments. "Since it is just Naruto that was needed, importantly enough to pay us for, it might be a mission that only he has the skills to perform. If it is not mission related, it might be a very urgent personal matter that could not be put off," he offered as an answer.

"Makes sense," Kiba said, blinking a bit at the monotone in which the answer had been delivered. Kiba didn't think he'd ever truly get used to Shino's speech. A thought suddenly struck the Inuzuka and he blurted it out. "You know, for as long as I've known Naruto, I don't really know anything about him other than he's loud, annoying, obsessed with ramen and wants to be Hokage. Aside from his dream - and love of ramen - he's never said anything about himself."

Shino raised an eyebrow and regarded Kiba coolly. "You're right. He never speaks about his personal life if it does not involve his dream or favourite food. You don't suppose Naruto is hiding something, do you?"

Shino's reply had instantly sparked Kiba's curiosity. He loved mysteries and this sounded like a good one to try and figure out. "If he is, we'll find out!" he announced. Akamaru barked his approval from his position inside Kiba's jacket.

"You can't do that!" Hinata said, surprising herself as well as her team-mates.

"Why not?" Kiba asked.

"B-because it's personal!" she squeaked, stuttering now that the spotlight was on her. "It's not right to pry into the personal affairs of others," she finished, letting a bit of her Hyuuga upbringing reflect in her words.

Shino appeared as impassive as ever, but Kiba turned his head around to face her. He gave her a playful grin and winked, making her blush. "Come on, Hinata, you know you're dying to find out!" Taking her silence as confirmation, he bounded out of the doorway to the Hokage Tower. "Let's start right now!"

* * *

 **I dare you to guess where we switched! Not only does Naruto have a mystery problem, but now Team 8 is doing some digging. What will they find?**

 **If you have read this, please take the time to review and tell us what you think. Is there an area we can improve upon?**

 **Thanks for reading and we hope to see you next chapter!**


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